ISLAMABAD: Annual Hajj rituals kicked off today in the holy city of Makkah as more than a million pilgrims, including Pakistanis, have started arriving at Mina on Makkah’s outskirts.
With temperatures expected to top 40 degrees Celsius, robed pilgrims slowly circled the Kaaba — the black cube at the heart of Makkah’s Grand Mosque, which is Islam’s holiest site.
Pilgrims will remain at Mina until Fajr next morning, the 9th Dhul Hijjah, before Hajj’s high-point, prayers on Mount Arafat to perform “Waqoof-e-Arafa”.
As per details, over 88,000 Pakistanis have traveled to Saudi Arabia under the government’s Hajj scheme, and over 23,620 Pakistanis are performing Hajj through private tour operators.
Pakistan’s Hajj Mission has completed all arrangements for the transportation of pilgrims to the world’s largest tent valley at Mina, the state-run Radio Pakistan reported.
The Pakistani pilgrims under the government Hajj scheme will reach Mina via 932 buses before Zuhr prayer tomorrow, it said.
The mission earlier advised Pakistani pilgrims to follow the directives issued by Saudi Arabia concerning the stoning of the devil or “Rami Al-Jamarat’ and animal sacrifice rituals during the annual Islamic pilgrimage.
Each ‘Maktab’ will have designated timings for the act of stoning the devil on the 10th of Dhul Hijjah, Radio Pakistan reported.
Saudi authorities have ratcheted up heat protection measures such as extra shade to avoid a repeat of last year, when 1,301 people died as temperatures hit 51.8C (125.2F).
